Policy

Singapore-headquartered solar manufacturer Maxeon Solar Technologies will invest more than $1.5 billion (USD 1 billion) to establish a TOPCon manufacturing facility in the United States, creating up to 1,800 highly skilled jobs.

Australian households that make the shift to all-electric energy-efficient appliances, combined with solar panels, battery storage and electric vehicles, could save $3,500 a year by 2030 and $4,320 by 2050 compared with a fossil-fuelled household that relies on gas appliances and petrol or diesel vehicles.

Australia’s national science agency will lead a ‘smart buildings’ pilot project that has the potential to create a new ecosystem of technologies and solutions to support flexible demand for energy, offering a way to ease pressure on the grid during peak demand periods.

As the nation looks to foster the perfect conditions for a successful renewable transition, overwhelming attention is being paid to the number of new energy developments and the viability of transmission infrastructure to deliver it to Australian homes. Far less publicised are the practicalities of how the infrastructure will be developed and by whom.

American investment giant BlackRock has teamed with the New Zealand government to launch a NZ$2 billion (AUD 1.86 billion) climate infrastructure fund to accelerate the growth of green energy technologies like solar, wind, green hydrogen and battery storage to fuel a low-emissions economy.

The size of Australia’s first coordinated renewable energy zone is set to be increased with the New South Wales government announcing the network capacity of the declared Central-West Orana Renewable Energy Zone will be expanded to better meet the state’s future energy needs as coal-fired power stations progressively retire.

Investors have lodged bids for 3.1 GW of wind and solar projects, along with 1.6 GW of long-duration storage projects, in response to the New South Wales government’s latest tender for renewable energy generation and storage capacity as it prepares for the exit of coal-fired power generation from the state’s electricity grid.

Paul Wormser, vice president for technology at Clean Energy Associates, says PV initiatives should be designed to last, as several well-meaning off-grid solar projects for the developing world have floundered over the years.

The Australian government needs to commit up to $138 billion (USD 90 billion) over the next decade to support manufacturing of renewable energy-related equipment or risk the country being left behind in the race to develop the technologies and manufacturing capacities needed to prosper from the global energy transition.

Flow battery technology is under the microscope with the Queensland government committing $24 million (USD 15.83 million) to further evaluate and assess the capacity of the technology to support the next stage of the state’s battery capability and help meet its renewable energy targets.